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The plan was simple. Dusk and Lex would sneak into the jail, break Duillearga out, and then flee to the western cliffs outside the city. At the same time Cyrilo and the crew would subdue the dock guards quietly, unmoor the ship, and sail out of the port in the cover of darkness without getting caught. Thankfully it had been stocked with supplies just before Duillearga was arrested, so it had plenty to make it to an island port a week away. It was a straightforward plan and easy to remember. The only issue was the enormous amount of things that could go wrong.
They spent the rest of the day on the ship getting things ready with Cyrilo. The crew, unsurprisingly, was completely on board for stealing the ship away from the city and getting their captain back. It seemed that the ‘upstanding’ crew Dusk had spent so much time with were also a bunch of pirates like Duillearga. He’d read a few stories here and there when he could and heard even more from Lex. Somehow he expected them to be much more cutthroat and intimidating, but in truth they were all very normal people, much like Diana’s thieves. As normal as sailors could be anyway. Once everyone was briefed on what was going to happen, the trio left the ship, letting the guards know they were just going to a tavern for the evening. They were seemingly unconcerned with the trio’s movements now that the captain was gone. They waved them on and went back to their gambling at a small table near the end of the dock.
Once off the docks they began to wind their way back toward the center of the city. Cyrilo wanted to show them where the guard headquarters was located. They weaved their way between buildings, going deeper and deeper into the city. The stench of the sewers came back again as the sea breeze died away, blocked by the buildings. Oppressive heat pushed in on all sides, reflecting down into the dark cobbled streets. Dusk and Lex were both drenched in sweat by the time they finally arrived at the edge of the massive stone square.
In front of them loomed a large building. It was three stories high and built entirely of tan sandstone bricks with thin glass windows stationed every few feet. It looked like a fortress that had been retrofitted more than anything and Dusk knew it would be hard to penetrate. At the edge of the square Cyrilo turned nonchalantly to the left and led them around the building on the far side. Spread evenly at the base of the foundation were open windows with bars set into the stone. It was dark beyond them and no matter how he turned his head he couldn’t catch a glimpse of anything that might be inside.
“That is where the dungeons are,” Cyrilo said, pretending he was stopping to look up at a nearby tavern sign. “The only way in or out is through the main entrance of the building.”
Dusk glanced back to see a hand reach out from between the bars as a man hurried by. The man yelped as the hand touched his ankle. He turned around, swiftly kicking at it, but the hand retracted before it would be damaged. Spitting in its direction, the man resituated his light gray robes, and continued past the building.
“How are we going to get him out if there are no other exits?” Dusk asked, turning away from the building.
“You tell me, you’re the one that’s going to do it,” Cyrilo replied. “Up until now the only plan I had was to try to storm the hanging, but now that you’re here, I think we have another option.”
“And what’s that?”
“I don’t know! I’m sure you can figure it out though.”
“That is probably the most unhelpful thing I’ve ever heard you say,” Lex said with a sigh.
“Then you haven’t been around me enough yet.” He reached out and poked Lex in the nose. “Despite my good looks and endless charm, I’m not always the guy with a plan. Besides, didn’t you say you had a dragon?”
“You... you want us to walk a dragon into the middle of the city?”
Cyrilo poked him again, wiggling his nose a bit with his finger. “Look at you. Such a smart boy!”
“That... is certainly a distraction,” Dusk said, wiping away a bead of sweat running down his neck. “I don’t know how Lyra is going to feel about it, but it would definitely work.”
“What do we do? Just waltz in with her and demand they set him free? Or maybe we should hitch her up like a mule and try to pull the bars out!?”
“Keep your voice down Alexander,” Cyrilo cut in, punching him in the shoulder.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Then don’t shout about breaking people out of jail in the middle of the day on a busy street,” Cyrilo whispered. He straightened himself back up and smoothed down his chest fur. “Now, the pair of you are going to buy me several drinks before we try to pull this crazy stunt off.” He looked directly at Lex, his green eyes narrowing. “And stop looking like such a butthurt loser.”
Lex, who was still rubbing his shoulder and pouting glared back at him. His brows furrowed. “I’m not doing any of those things,” he replied petulantly.
“Come on you two,” Dusk said, pushing them toward the tavern. He turned his attention to Cyrilo. “He fights with Tara constantly and always stands up for himself. But whenever he’s around you he acts like he’s the victim.”
“That’s because he likes the attention,” Cyrilo chuckled, leaning in close to Dusk. “Besides, he knows better than to tangle with me.”
“I think we all know better than that.”
Two hours later and several drinks in, the three of them were sitting at a table, carrying on as if nothing else mattered in all the world. They’d had enough to loosen their tongues and relax, but still knew the seriousness of the situation. Besides, it was something enjoyable to do before the duties of the night had to be tended to.
“What I don’t understand,” Dusk said, leaning forward to Cyrilo, “is why Ciaran told us The Zephyr was a Ditanian ship if he got it here.” He took another swig of his drink. “Why not just tell the truth? He was already involved with the thieves guild, it’s not like we would have cared.”
“It is a Ditanian ship. That’s why that Inahandrian warship attacked us just south of the island chain,” Cyrilo replied, pushing his fifth empty mug forward. He held his liquor extremely well, Dusk noticed. “It’s original owner is an immigrant, he brought the ship with him to start a new trade business down here.”
“That went really well for him,” Lex giggled. “Probably some rich noble anyway.”
“Actually he was. I think one from Eblesal? Although I can’t be sure. He wasn’t in one of the big families, just one of the richer merchants.” Cyrilo leaned back in his chair, folding his hands over his stomach. “But he was an avid card player and Ciaran loves a good game of cards. It turned out the man was a very poor loser and refused to pay his debts to Ciaran after a long night of gambling.”
“That sounds like a good reason to steal his boat to me,” Lex said, stuffing his face into his tankard.
“Well Ciaran was cheating you see, and the merchant suspected it, but couldn’t prove it.” Cyrilo shrugged with a sigh. “So the next night Ciaran stormed his boat with a makeshift crew and sailed it off into the darkness. But he left the man tied up on the dock in nothing but his skin, just to add insult to injury.”
“I’m surprised he’s gotten as far as he has,” Dusk said, reaching out for a piece of bread in the center of the table. He wanted to keep himself fairly clear headed for their planned escapade. “That man is more of a menace than I gave him credit for.”
“You have no idea.”
Dusk turned and glanced out the window. The sun had set some time ago and the town was full of warm lantern light as darkness set in. He knew the time was drawing near to enact their plan. Already he’d spoken with Lyra from the comfort of their table, letting her know what needed to happen. She’d reluctantly agreed and went silent. He reached out again, hoping she’d softened a bit over the past couple of hours.
“Lyra,” he thought, reaching out to their connection. “Are you there?”
“I’m here,” she sighed. “Have you come up with a better plan yet?”
Dusk winced, hearing the annoyance in her voice. “No. This is the only plan we’ve got.”
“You know how bad it looks to have a dragon attack a town for no reason?” she huffed. “You’re making me look like the monsters they paint us to be in their storybooks.”
“I know, but I can’t think of another way to draw all the guards away. I’d use magic to break him out, but I don’t think we have enough resources as it is. I’ll already need to use some if we can’t find a key. Not to mention if we get into any serious trouble.”
“Fine, fine,” she conceded. “Just tell me when to go set something on fire and I’ll go,
I guess.”
“I owe you Lyra,” he replied.
“Damn right you do.” Then, in a whisper that wasn’t meant to come through. “Humans. Making me look like a brainless lizard.”
Dusk opened his eyes once more, smiling at Lyra’s final comment. He looked up to see both Cyrilo and Lex staring back at him.
“Everything ready?” Lex asked.
“Yep. She’s waiting for our signal.”
“We’ll be sailing in absolute darkness,” Cyrilo began, leaning close and suddenly serious. “You’ll have to find me the same way you did before. I’ll warn the crew about the dragon, but I don’t know how they’ll react either way.” He reached up and put a hand on Dusk’s. “Bring my idiot back to me.”
“We’ll get him one way or another.”
“Shall we begin this foolishness then?”
Lex sighed, laying his head down atop his crossed arms on the table. “If we have to,” he said, his voice muffled by his sleeves.
“Call your beastie.” Cyrilo pushed himself up from the table and straightened his clothing. “And I’ll see you in a few hours.”
“Do me a favor,” Dusk said. “Don’t call Lyra that. She’ll probably eat you.”
Cyrilo flared his claws and clicked them together. “We’ll see about that.”
Twenty minutes later both Lex and Dusk found themselves in the main square near the judiciary building trying to look as innocuous as possible. They found a few spare crates and were sitting atop them, eating meat on a stick they’d purchased from a street vendor. Lex, having had a bit to drink, finished his quickly but Dusk still had one held between his fingers. His attention was turned to the sky however, looking for Lyra who had been summoned before they left the tavern. For some reason she still hadn’t shown. He was starting to worry she’d changed her mind at the last minute, and no matter how he tried to reach out to her, she wouldn’t allow the connection. He continued to try, but she blocked every attempt.
“She’s not responding,” Dusk snapped, tossing the uneaten food into the street in annoyance.
“Aww, why did you throw it away?”
“Lex.”
“Sorry. Stay on task. What do you think she’s doing?”
“I have no—”
Before he could finish his sentence, something high above him caught his attention. At first he didn’t know what it was, just a bright orange light in the distance. But as it got closer it began to take shape. He sucked in a breath through his teeth, no believing his eyes. There, in the western sky, was Lyra, carrying an entire wooden cart that was set aflame. He heard a few shouts at the far edge of the city as she closed in, her underside illuminated by the flames. Then, just as she came near the edge of town, she let out a massive gout of fire and dropped the cart. Even from their position they could hear the resounding crash followed by screams from the townspeople.
Immediately all the guards in the square turned to look, seeing an enormous fire-breathing monster in the sky. The alarm went up instantly and within moments heavily armored guards were flowing from the building. A small brigade of men clambered onto their horses and took off in Lyra’s direction. Others followed behind on foot, brandishing swords, spears, and axes. The civilians ran from the square, heading to their homes to hide from the terror in the sky. Dusk and Lex watched as everyone ignored them completely and emptied the square in only a few minutes. Shouts could still be heard in the distance as they looked to one another, the building in front of them standing abandoned and wide open.
“Well, the cart was a nice touch,” Lex said, pulling out his rapier. He paused as a thought struck him. “Where... where do you think she got it from?”